Infant&#39;s play pen



May 22, 1951 M. F. HARRIS v mum's PLAY PEN 2 sheets sheet 1 Filed Nov.22, 1948 I am v INVENTOR.

: Wake/Z 7 Farms.

-line as Fig. 4, with the play Patented May 22, 1951 INFANTS PLAY PENMechell F. Harris, Kansas City,"Mo. Application November 22,1948, SerialNo. 61,510

11 Claims. (Cl. '99) This invention relates to new and usefulimprovements in infants play pens, andhas as its principal object theprovision of an infants play .pen wherein the floor may be adjustablyraised or lowered. Thus the floor maybe elevated in order to accommodatevery young infants whereby the mother may place the baby in or remove itfrom the pen without objectionable bending vorstooping. Elevating thefloor also adapts the pen for convenient use as a bed. On the otherhand, the floor may be lowered in order to accommodate larger children.

Another object is theprovision of a collapsible infants play penincluding side and end walls,

a sectioned floor carried by said walls for vertical adjustment, andnovel means whereby said floor reinforces and stiifens the entire penstructure.

Other objects are simplicity and economy of construction, ease andconvenience of use, and adaptability to be collapsed to a relativelyfiat 'formfor convenience of storage or transportation.

With these objects in view, as Well as other "objects-which will appearin the course of the specification, reference will be had to thedrawing, wherein:

Figure 1 is a perspective view of an infants play pen embodyin thepresent invention, showing the floor in the elevated position.

Fig. 2 is a perspective view of the play pen in its collapsed or foldedposition.

Fig. 3 is a horizontal section through the pen taken just above thefloor, with parts broken away.

Fig. 4 is an enlarged section taken on line Fig. 5 is an enlargedsection taken on the same pen in its folded position.

Fig. 6 is an enlarged fragmentary section taken on line VIVI of Fig. 4.

Fig. 7 is a fragmentary section taken on line VII-VII Of Fig. 6.

Fig. 8lis an enlarged fragmentary section taken on lineVIIL-VIII of Fig.4.

Fig. 9 is a fragmentary section taken on line IX-IX ofFig. 8.

posts, and aplurality of spaced apart vertical slats .or balusters l4extending between and rigidly fixed to said top and bottom rails.

'Each of end walls 6 is divided centrally into two sections 16 and i8each comprising a toprail 20, bottom rail 22, connecting slats 24, and avertical post .26 disposedalong .the edge thereof adjacent theassociatedend wall section. Sections l6 and l 8 of each end wall arepivotally connected by hinges 28 disposed on the outer surfaces of posts-26. Top rail 20 and bottom rail 22 of each end .wall section are eachpivotally secured at their outer ends to brackets 30 by means ofvertical screws 32, as .best shown in Fig. 4. Said brackets are rigidlysecured to end posts 8 by any suitable means. Sections l6 and i8 of eachend wall 6 are thus adapted to be folded inwardly vas shown in .Fig. 2,said folding movement also drawing sidewalls inwardly whereby the entirestructure assumes arelatively flat position which provides conveniencefor storage or transportation. It will be notedthat pivot screws 32 are.disposed inwardly from'the planes of side walls ii), whereby when thepen is folded as described,.sections l6 and I8 of the end walls Will bespaced apart from the adjacent side wall I9, the space therebetweenbeing adapted to receive the pen floor as hereinafter described.

A latchbar34 is pivotally secured to the inner surface of top .rail .20of each wall section l8 adjacent the .inner end thereof by means of alatch bars serve'to stiffen the hinge connection between .endwallsections l6 and I8, and to precent said Wall sections from foldingwhile the floor is being positioned. The play penis supported byfloorengaging casters 40 carried at the lower ends of each end post .8and at the lower end of post 26 of each end wall sections 16. A

plate 4i isrigidly fixed to thelower end of said post 26 and extendsbeneath end post 26 of end wall section 18. This prevents sagging of thecentral portions .of end wall 6 due to the load imposed thereon by thehereinafter described floor members.

.The .play penfioor comprises two rectangular sections 52 and M eachhaving its major axis parallel to Side Walls 4, and each comprising aplanar sheet :16 mounted on a rectangularframe 48. Adjacent each of itsouter corners, each of said floor sections ,is provided with a hookadapted to engage aheadedtrunnion pin 52,fixed in the adjacent-end post8. As best shownin Figs; 8 and 9, each of hooks 50 comprises a platesecured at its inner end tofloor frame 48 by any suitable meanssuchasscrews 54 and provided at its outer. end .Withan outwardlyand.downwardly ;.inc1ined,slot;56adapted .to engage trun- .nion pin .52.Itwill benoted that the trunnion the inner surface of the adjacent sidewall 4, as shown in Fig. 5. It is apparent from the inclination of slots56, that floor sections 42 and 44 must be moved both inwardly andupwardly to be disengaged from trunnions 52. Since said floor sectionsabut at their inner edges when in position for use, they obviously cannot be moved inwardly, and are thus secured on said trunnions. Anelognated metal plate 58 is rigidly secured to lower surface of frame 48of floor section 42 along the inner edge thereof, and extends the fulllength of said edge. Said plate extends under the adjacent portion offloor section 44, and is provided at its outer-edge with an upturnedflange 60 adapted to engage a matching groove 62 formed in frame 48 offloor section 44. Floor section 42 is supported at its inner edge bymeans hereinafter described, and plate 58 supports the inner edge offloor section 44 and strengthens and stiffens said floor sections. Theengagement of flange 6G in groove '52 prevents separation of the floorsections, and unites said floor sections in a substantially unitarystructure which reinforces the entire play pen.

At each of its ends, plate 58 is provided with a downturned flange 64adapted to lie against the inner surfaces of posts 26 of respective endwall sections l6, as best shown in Figs. 4, 6 and 7. A latch member 66,which is pivotally mounted in a recess 68 provided in post 26 by meansof a horizontal pivot pin 10, extends outwardly from said recess at itsupper end and is formed to pre sent a notch 12 adapted to engage flange64, as shown in Fig. 6. Portion 14 of latch member 66 extending belowpivot pin 10 abuts against the bottom of recess 68 to limit the outwardmovement of the upper portion of said latch member. Said latch is urgedoutwardly by a compression spring is bearing at one end against latchmember '65 above pivot pin 10, and at its opposite end in a socket i8formed at the base of recess 68. Latch members 66 may be pivotedinwardly against springs 16 to lie completely within recesses 68, thuspermitting floor section 42 to be moved upwardly past said latches. Saidlatch members are then forced outwardly by springs 16, and floor section42 may be lowered to bring flanges 64 into engagement with notches 12.Said latches thus support floor section 42 firmly, and also secure endwalls 6 against outward movement.

It is believed that the operation of the device is clear. As shown inFig. 4, end posts 8 are provided with upper and lower sets of trunnions52, and corresponding latches 66 carried by posts 26 of the end walls,whereby the floor. may be supported at upper and lower elevations. Whenat its lower elevation, said floor adapts the pen for use by largerchildren. Also when the floor is in its lower position, floor sections42 and 44 may be pivoted upwardly on trunnions 52 to lie respectivelyagainst the inner surfaces of side walls 4, as shown in Figs. 2 and 5,and end walls 5 may be folded inwardly to collapse the pen as previouslydescribed. When the floor is in its upper position, it adapts the penfor use by very small children or babies. While only two sets oftrunnions 52 and latches 66 are shown, it is obvious that intermediatesets of trunnions and latches could be provided without departing fromthe spirit of the invention, thereby providing a stepped verticaladjustment for the floor.

Thus an infants play pen having several a vantages has been produced.The vertical adjustment of the floor provides convenience not heretoforeobtainable. Saidadjustment is very simply accomplished. The floorsections are easily removed and adjusted for collapsing the pen, withoutoperating fasteners, bolts and nuts, or the like, and at the same timeso interlock with each other and with the supporting wall structure asto form an essentially unitary structure of good strength and rigidity.

Although I have disclosed a specific embodiment of my invention, it isapparent that many minor changes of construction and operation could bemade without departing from the spirit of the invention.

What I claim is:

1. An infants play pen comprising a supporting structure having sidewalls and inwardly foldable end walls, a pair of floor sections eachpivotally secured at its outer edge to the adjacent side wall at anadjustable elevation thereon and adapted to abut at its inner edgeagainst the inner edge of the other of said floor sections, meanscarried by said end walls for supporting said floor sectionshorizontally, and means whereby said abutting inner edges areinterlocked to prevent relative transverse movement of said floorsections.

2. An infants play pen comprising a supporting structure having sidewalls and inwardly foldable end walls. a pair of floor sections eachpivotally secured at its outer edge to the adjacent side wall at anadjustable elevation thereon and adapted to abut at its inner edgeagainst the inner edge of the other of said floor sections, meanscarried by said end walls for supporting the first of said floorsections horizontally, and a plate secured to the lower surface of saidfloor sections and adapted to extend beneath and support the second ofsaid floor sections, said plate being formed to present an upturnedflange adapted to engage a matching groove formed in said second floorsection.

3. An infants play pen comprising parallel side walls each having endposts, inwardly foldable end walls pivotally attached at their ends tocorresponding end posts of said side walls, a plurality of verticallyspaced trunnion pins carried by each of said end posts and disposedparallel to said side walls, a pair of normally horizontal fiOOr membersdisposed within said side and end walls, hook members carried at theouter corners of each of said floor sections and adapted to engageselectively ccrresponding trunnions on the adjacent end posts, wherebysaid floor sections are supported for pivotal movement to and from saidside Walls, and means carried by said end walls for supporting saidfloor sections horizontally with their inner edges abutting.

4. An infants play pen comprising parallel side walls each having endposts, inwardly foldable end walls pivotally attached at their ends tocorresponding end posts of said side walls, a plurality of verticallyspaced trunnion pins carried by each of said end posts and disposedparallel to said side walls, a pair of normally horizontal floor membersdisposed within said side and end walls, members fixed to the outercorners of each of said floor sections and each provided with anoutwardly and downwardly inclined slot adapted to engage a trunnion on.the adjacent end post, all of said slotted members being adapted toengage selectively corresponding trunnions on said end posts wherebysaid floor sections are supported for pivotal movement to and from saidside walls, and means carried by said end walls for supporting saidfloor sections horizontally with their inner edges abutting.

5. An infants play pen comprising parallel side walls each having endposts, inwardly foldable end walls pivotally attached at their ends tocorresponding end posts of said side walls, a plurality of verticallyspaced trunnion pins carried by each of said end posts and disposedparallel to said side walls, a pair of normally horizontal floor membersdisposed within said side and end walls, hook members carried at theouter corners of each of said floor sections and adapted to engageselectively corresponding trunnions on the adjacent end posts, wherebysaid floor sections are supported for pivotal movement to and from saidside walls, means carried by said end walls for supporting said floorsections horizontally with their inner edges abutting, and interlockingthe abutting edge portions of said floor sections to prevent transverseseparation thereof.

6. An infants play pen comprising parallel side walls each having endposts, inwardly foldable end walls pivotally attached at their ends tocorresponding end posts of said side walls, a plurality of verticallyspaced trunnion pins carried by each of said end posts and disposedparallel to said side walls, a pair of normally horizontal floor membersdisposed within said side and end walls, hook members carried at theouter corners of each of said floor sections and adapted to engageselectively corresponding trunnions on the adjacent end posts, wherebysaid floor sections are supported for pivotal movement to and from saidside walls, means carried by said end Walls for supporting the first ofsaid floor sections horizontally, and a plate carried by said firstfloor section and extending beneath th inner edge of the second of saidfloor sections to support said second floor section in coplanar relationwith said first floor section, said plate being provided with anupturned flange adapted to engage a matching groove formed in saidsecond floor section.

7. An infants play pen comprising parallel side walls each having endposts, inwardly foldable end walls pivotally attached at their ends tocorresponding end posts of said side Walls, a plurality of verticallyspaced trunnion pins carried by each of said end posts and disposedparallel to said side walls, a pair of normally horizontal floor membersdisposed within said side and end walls, members fixed to the outercorner of each of said floor sections and each provided with anoutwardly and downwardly inclined slot adapted to engage a trunnion onthe adjacent end post, all of said slotted members being adapted toengage selectively corresponding trunnions on said end posts wherebysaid floor sections are sup ported for pivotal movement to and from saidside walls, means carried by said end walls for supporting the first ofsaid floor sections horizontally, and a plate fixed to said first floorsection and extending beneath the second of said floor sections, saidplate being provided with an upturned flange adapted to engage amatching recess formed in said second floor section.

8. An infants play pen comprising a supporting structure having sidewalls and inwardly foldable end walls, a pair of floor sections eachpivotally secured at its outer edge to the adjacent side wall at anadjustable elevation thereon and adapted to abut at its inner edgeagainst the inner edge of the other 01 said floor sections, and latchmembers carried by said end walls and adapted to engage said floormembers adjacent the abutting edges thereof, whereby said floor sectionsare supported horizontally and firmly connected to said end walls.

9. An infants play pen comprising a supporting structure having sidewalls and inwardly foldable end walls, a pair of floor sections eachpivotally secured at its outer edge to the adjacent side wall at anadjustable elevation thereon and adapted to abut at its inner edgeagainst the inner edge of the other of said fioor sections, a platefixed to the lower surface of the first of said fioor sections adjacentthe inner edge thereof, said plate extending beneath and supporting thesecond of said floor sections, and having its end portions formed topresent downwardly turned flanges adjacent said end walls, and latchescarried by said end walls and adapted to engage said flanges to supportsaid floor sections and secure them to said end walls.

10. An infants play pen comprising a supporting structure having sidewalls and inwardly foldable end walls, a pair of floor sections eachpivotally secured at its outer edge to the adjacent side wall at anadjustable elevation thereon and adapted to abut at its inner edgeagainst the inner edge of the other of said floor sections, a platefixed to the lower surface of the first of said fioor sections adjacentthe inner edge thereof, said plate having an edge portion extendingbeneath and supporting the second of said floor sections, said edgeportion being formed to present an upturned flange adapted to engage amatching recess formed in said second floor section, and the endportions of said plate being formed to present downwardly turned flangesadjacent said end walls, and latch members carried pivotally in recessesformed in said end walls and having notched portions extending outwardlyfrom said recesses to engage said downturned flanges to support saidfloor sections horizontally and to secure said end walls firmly to saidfloor sections.

11. An infants play pen comprising a support ing structure having sidewalls and inwardly foldable end walls, said end walls each comprising apair of sections hinged together and having their outer ends pivotallysecured to said side walls, a pair of floor sections each pivotallysecured at its outer edge to the adjacent side wall and adapted to abutat its inner edge against the inner edge of the other of said floorsections, means carried by said end walls for supporting said floorsections horizontally, a floor engaging caster carried at each end ofeach of said side walls, a, floor engaging caster carried by one sectionof each of said end walls adjacent said hinge connection, and a memberfixed to each of said last named end wall sections and adapted to extendbeneath and support the adjacent end wall section.

MECHELL F. HARRIS.

REFERENCES CITED The following references are of record in the file ofthis patent:

UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date 1,524,331 Baxter Jan. 2'7, 19252,224,310 Merrett et a1 Dec. 10, 1940 2,434,620 Landry et a1 Jan. 13,1948

